Our Ministerial Letter
The goal of Our Ministerial Letter was to positively influence attitudes toward aspects of the church and its idea of ministry. The publication was put together, in 1912, by the newly organized Missionary Committee, and J.W. Phelps provided the first letter. His letter laid out the theme of many letters to follow: the controversial topic of administrative organization within the Church of God. Phelps dispelled the fears that structural and organizational committees of the Church of God will lead to the movement’s downfall. Phelps and his colleagues’ work on Our Ministerial Letter marked the dissatisfaction with the absence of institutional structures with the Church of God, and more importantly, pushed the boundaries of the movement.
Around 1917, as contributors started getting involved in the bureaucratic organizations within the Church of God, the necessity of Our Ministerial Letter declined. As a result, in 1918 the publication dissolved. Throughout its existance, the publication pushed for social change within the movement.
Leaders who contributed to Our Ministerial Letter include:
J. E. Forrest | J. W Phelps | G. Q. Coplin |
R. L. Berry | Geoge W. Olsen | John C. Blaney |
J. W. Byers | F. G. Smith | J.T. Wilson |
D. O. Teasley | H. M. Riggle | J. M. Nichols-Roy |
H. M. Riggle | D. T. Koch | E. N. Reedy |
David Nelson | H. H. Schliep | E. A.Reardon |
Orval Line | H. A. Sherwood | W. G. Alexander |
Gloria G. Hunnex | Russel R. Byrum | G. W. Johnson |
Thaddeus Neff | J. E. Forrest | C. W. Naylor |
J. Grant Anderson | Reuben H. Walling | Henry Klemme |
F. W. Heinly | Emma A. Meyers | J. C. Turner |
A. B. Frost | E. E. Byrum | Woodrow Wilson |
Casper Coffman | Willliam Hartman |